Andy Murray is as fast as Usain Bolt, says his fitness trainer Jez Green ahead of the Australian Open

Andy Murray is perfectly placed to build on his grand slam breakthrough at the
US Open, according to his long-serving fitness trainer Jez Green, because he
is only now coming into his prime as an athlete.

During extensive testing on his winter training block in Miami, Andy Murray turned in record scores on every front. Not only has he added 3lb of muscle over the past 12 months, but his cardiovascular scores are also up and he can sustain a pulse rate of 200 beats per minute.

“Andy is moving towards his physiological peak from the ages of 25 [which he is now] to 28,” said Green, a former competitive kick-boxer who travels with Murray to most of his tournaments.

“I’ve been training him for five years and I still find it hard to believe all the things that he can do. He is naturally fast but he is also so strong: on his best day he can do 27 pull-ups, and push 500lb on the leg-press.

“It’s usually very difficult to put on muscle and improve endurance, as they counteract each other in training. But Andy has improved endurance statistics and put on 3lb of lean muscle.

“He could also probably run a 53 seconds 400 metres if he trained for it. He is a big powerful guy, whereas Novak Djokovic has a wiry strength; his flexibility is extraordinary.

“Andy has lazy speed — by which I mean that he doesn’t look as if he’s moving that fast, but it’s actually deceptive. He’s been clocked at moving at 10 metres per second over very short intervals, maybe even as short as a single step, which is as fast as Usain Bolt. I’m not saying that he is that fast over 100 metres but he has great acceleration when he is chasing down a drop shot.

“Even more valuable than his flat speed is the ability to stop and turn so quickly. He’s putting three times his body weight through his legs in that moment, so they have to be seriously strong.

“But above all he is fast with his eyes: he picks up the cues so quickly and he knows where the ball is going that much faster than almost anyone else. All the guys in the top 10 have that ability to some extent.”

When you look at the physical capacities of the four leading male players, it is perhaps not surprising that the next generation are struggling to bridge the gap. They have every aspect of the game covered: technical expertise, physical endurance and psychological strength, all of which will be crucial in the coming days in Australia, presently sweltering in a record-breaking heatwave.

Last Sunday, the sumptuously talented Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov lost to Murray in the final of the Brisbane International, and after the match he was asked what is so different about the top four players.

“Well, everything,” he replied. “I mean, the guys are just stronger. There is always a little something they bring out when they have to, whether on a break point or when you’re under pressure. For example, I had a set point in the first set, and he aced me at 209kph [130mph] out wide. So I was like: ‘OK’.”

Green is in full agreement with Dimitrov’s point. As he says, “It’s a tough time to be a tennis player. What you’re seeing in this generation is a group of guys with incredible genetics: you can try to play like Roger Federer, you can imitate his footwork, but he is just born with something that sets him apart. The work you do as a fitness trainer is about trying to maximise that.”